Rat-trap



'(Nu Model.) A

T. MERRELL. RA'T TEAP.

No. 450,176. I Patented Apvr. 14, 1891.

UNITED STATES PATEN'r THOMAS MERRELL, OF IIINDSBOROUGH, ILLINOIS.

RAT-T RAP.

SPECIFICATION forming' part of Letters Patent No. 450,176, dated April 14, 1891.

Application filed July 16, 1890. Serial No. 3581907. (No model.)

To all witam it may concern:

Be it known that I, THOMAS MERRELL, a Citizen of the United States, residin g at Hindsborough, in the County of Douglass and State Illinois, have invented a new and useful Rat- Trap, of which the following is a specifioation.

My invention relates to that class of rattraps known as the automatic trap, and the purpose and object of the invention is to catch rats (or other animals) by bait in conjunCtion with an osCillatin g platform, trigger, and Cage, in which the oseillating platform is held in position by a trigger, and 'after the trigger is thrown the weight under the front end of the platform causes it to swing back to the proper level; and the invention consists in the Combination of devices as set forth in my original application for Letters Patent.

Figure 1 shows the Complete rat-trap and Cage. Fig. 2 is a side view of the platform P leading to the Cage and the trigger and dropdoors a and x of trap. Fig. 3 shows the slide door B at rear of Cage on the end thereof.

The fioors of the rat trap and Cage are made of Wood, and the floor of the trap projects four inohes in front at F, as shown in Fig. 1. T he front and rear of Cage E are of wood, and the Cage and trap are both Covered with wiresCreen IV, which is fastened securely to the wooden frame by small staples, and said platform is provided with a heavy weight at the front end atf, as shown in Fig. 2.

The front end and sides I of trap, the platform P, drop-doors a and a; are Sheet-iron. The drop-door a is swung on a piVot at b, (which extends through to the other side of the frame,) and said door is connected to platform P by an iron pivot-rod r, so that when the trap is thrown and platform drops down, the drop-door a falls down and closes the entrance to the trap. The drop-door a' is fastened by the pivot u to the floor in front of the entrance d, and the upper end rests on the rod y, which is fastened to the platform by pivots on either side. The platform P has a fiange on either side the whole length of platform to which the pivots are attached by holes through the fianges. The piVot upon.

which the platform Prests and moves up and down is attaChed on either side to Wire-mesh by a strip of tin set in mesh by a loop over the wire at each end, or may be soldered to the wire keep them in.

sufficiently long to fasten to mesh. Platform P rests on front of trap at I when set. The Sheet-iron front end of trap at i has flanges, so that the front end of platform P works up and down in said flanges so it will maintain its proper position, and the flanges stiffen front end of trap, as shown in Fig. 1.

The front of Cage E is provided with an opening d and a trigger, which is made of iron, and is fastened to the front of Cage at o by a clamp through which the rod works loosely, and the lower end of the trigger-rod has a notch at C upon which the end of platform P rests. The rod is shaped into a sharp hook for the bait, as shown at h, and the rod extends through the opening g and is finished in a heavy Coil, as shown in Fig. 2. The Coil aCts as a weight to press the notch c under the platform and hold it up until the trigger is pulled. Vhen the bait on hook his pulled, the weight of the cloil is overbalanced, and this throws notch c from under the platform P, which drops down and is held down by the weight of the rat, and the rat is thrown into Cage or runs into Cage. The rear end of the Cage has a slide-door B, as shown in Fig. 3, to be raised to let the rats out and lowered to Fig. 2 shows the position of the platform, trigger, and drop-doors of'the trap when open, and the dotted lines show their positions when the trap is thrown. The end of trap at I is open, and when the rat passes into the trap he runs along the platform P to the baithook h, and pulling trigger or by eating bait the notch c slips from under platform P, and his weight tips the platform and it falls to the floor, as shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 2, and the drop-door a falls down, as shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 2, to shut off es- Cape. The rat passes into the Cage through the opening d, and the weight f causes platform to resume horizontal position and set the trigger.

I Claim that the trap is automatioand sets itself as often as it is thrown. The weight Causes platform to rise when the rat runs off and the end of the platform Strikes the lower end of trigger-rod and presses the rod baCl; until the platform rests on the notCh o, where it is held by the weight of the Coil on the trigger, and then the trap is set ready for next rat.

IOO

I clainl as my invention and desire to sethe opening d, 2,11 constl'ucted and al'ranged cure by Letters Patentt-o opel'ate substantially as and for the put' In an automatic tmp,wthe oseillatng platpose set for'th. form P, provided With the Weight fat its front THOMAS MERRELL. 5 end, and conneoting-rod r, in combination XVitnesses:

' with the drop-door co, the triggel' h, the Cage A. Y. TROGDON,

E, the drop-door x, and 'the slide-door B, and ALICE TROGDON. 

